I'm not sure what to even say about the shocking - yet not really
surprising - revelations broken by Yahoo! and ESPN over the weekend
regarding how corrupt college basketball truly is regarding payments to
recruits and/or their families. Why does it feel like whichever school wins
the national title will eventually have to vacate it like Louisville did
for its 2013 championship? I don't see how Arizona can keep Sean Miller as
head coach after it was reported FBI wiretaps had intercepted phone
conversations between Miller and a runner for an agent during which they
discussed paying $100,000 to ensure that Deandre Ayton, Arizona's star
freshman center, would sign with the Wildcats. Miller stepped away from the
team for Saturday's game but Ayton played. Naturally, both denied the
allegations. Arizona has no shot at winning it all if Ayton, perhaps the
No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft, is declared ineligible
(second-leading scorer Allonzo Trier was recently declared ineligible
because traces of a banned substance were found in his blood stream; UA is
appealing that). Whether Miller is back on the bench for Thursday's game
vs. Stanford is up in the air as of now. I highly doubt he ever coaches for
Arizona again.

ACC game at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN. Miami was trending toward the NCAA
Tournament bubble but has probably played itself off that by following a
three-game losing streak with back-to-back wins. The Canes escaped at home
against a bad Boston College team on Saturday, 79-78. Freshman Lonnie
Walker IV hit the winning 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds left as UM rallied
from 14 down. Walker's probably a one-and-done guy who could be a 2018
lottery pick. North Carolina is playing for a top-four finish in the ACC
and the double-bye that accompanies that. UNC was one of the schools
mentioned in that Yahoo! report but not involving a current player. The
Heels have been off since last Wednesday's 78-74 win at Syracuse, their
sixth straight victory. Might North Carolina be caught looking past this
game and to Saturday's regular-season finale at Duke?

It's the only scheduled meeting between these schools. Last year, they
split. The Canes beat the visiting and No. 9 Tar Heels, 77-62, in the
regular season behind 30 points (on just 11 shots) from Bruce Brown - the
sophomore remains currently sidelined after surgery a few weeks ago for a
broken foot. Brown's point total was the highest by a Hurricanes freshman
since they joined the ACC, and Miami improved to 5-4 against North Carolina
under Jim Larranaga. However, the Heels got payback with a 78-53 blowout in
the ACC Tournament.

Key trends:
The Hurricanes are 1-7 against the spread in their past eight after a win.
The Heels are 5-1 ATS in their past six. The home team is 5-2 ATS in the
past seven meetings.

The pick:
Miami.

Kansas State at TCU (-7)

Big 12 matchup at 9 p.m. ET on ESPNU. K-State is on the NCAA bubble,
probably the right side of it, at 20-9 overall and 9-7 in the Big 12. The
Wildcats had a three-game winning streak snapped on Saturday, 86-77 at
Oklahoma. Kansas State was just 4-for-21 from 3-point range. Barry Brown
led KSU with 28 points. It was his 11th game this season scoring
at least 20, and he leads the team in averaging 16.6 points per game. TCU
won its third straight game Saturday, 82-72 over Baylor to get to .500 in
the Big 12. Alex Robinson scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half and
the Frogs shot 70 percent from the field after intermission. TCU swept
Baylor in a season series for the first time since 1989 back when they were
in the Southwest Conference.

K-State beat TCU in Manhattan when the Frogs were ranked No. 24, 73-68, on
Jan. 20. I recommend you go back and watch highlights of that one because
KSU was wearing terrific throwback lavender and deep purple jerseys from
the team that reached the 1981 Elite Eight. Dean Wade led the Wildcats with
20 points. Frogs coach Jamie Dixon was ejected in the second half after a
second technical.

Key trends:
The Cats are 4-1 ATS in their past five after a loss. The Frogs have
covered five of their past six at home. K-State is 4-1 ATS in the past five
in the series.

The pick:
TCU.

Oklahoma at Baylor (-4.5)

We stay in the Big 12 at 9 p.m. but on ESPN2. Oklahoma boosted its NCAA
Tournament chances - you know the TV networks want to have freshman
sensation Trae Young in the Big Dance - with an 86-77 home win over Kansas
State on Saturday to end a six-game losing streak. Young had 28 points and
seven assists and continues to lead the nation in scoring (28.3 ppg) and
assists (9.1 apg). He was 6-for-10 from 3-point range against KSU and had
five turnovers compared to a conference-record 12 in the first meeting with
the Wildcats. At 17-12 and 7-9 in the Big 12, Baylor is definitely a bubble
team. A two-game losing streak hasn't helped matters. The Bears were beaten
by 10 at TCU on Saturday. Leading scorer Manu Lecomte was just 1-for-10
from the floor in that one with five points. Baylor can't afford a loss
here because it probably falls to close the regular season at Kansas State
on Saturday.

On Jan. 30, Baylor lost 98-96 at No. 12 Oklahoma, the Bears' season-high
fourth straight defeat at the time to drop them to 2-7 in the conference -
they looked nothing like a potential NCAA Tournament team then. Young had
44 points, 31 in the second half. Lecomte scored 29 points and Nuni Omot
scored 23 for Baylor. King McClure missed a wild shot at the buzzer.

Key trends:
The Sooners have failed to cover their past eight on the road. The Bears
are 6-2 ATS in their past eight overall. The underdog is 4-1 ATS in the
past five meetings.

Free Play from Doc's Sports.
Take #876 Under in Syracuse
vs Duke (9:35p.m., Friday
March 23 CBS) Nobody is
giving Syracuse a chance in
this game since Duke is very
familiar with the zone as
they see it every year in ACC
play. Therefore, the only
chance that they have is to
really slow the game down and
keep Duke under 60 points.
Syracuse has done this in
three straight NCAA
Tournament games and they do
have some size to match-up
with Carter and Bagley down
low. Syracuse has gone under
the posted total in 7 of
their last 9 NCAA Tournament
games. Duke has gone under
the posted total in 8 of the
last 10 games. Do not miss
out on Doc's Sports Sweet 16
card featuring action on both
Thursday and Friday. Sign-up
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